Catalyst
by Organization III
Summary: Torture. Blood. Pain. Angst. Someone's controlling Larxene....someone's trying to brutally kill Axel...and Roxas is sucked into this too. And...did I mention the blood
1. Chapter 1: Aquaintance

It was dark, too dark to see anything. Axel sat up, pressing a hand against his aching head. It felt as though someone had dropped a ton of bricks on top of him; the pain was intense. "Where am I?" Axel groaned. He couldn't see or feel anything; the darkness was eerily still. "Hello?" he yelled. "Is anyone here?"

_Hello._

Axel started in surprise. Had he really heard a voice? He wasn't sure. Weakly, he got up to his feet. One knee ached as he got up; Axel wondered why. "Is anyone here?" He called again.

_I am._

Axel knew he heard the voice, but it hadn't come from the darkness. It was inside his head, inside the pain that barraged his skull. Axel turned again, looking at the darkness for any sign of his companion. "Where.. where are you?" He yelled.

_I'm right here..Axel._

"How do you know my name?" Axel shouted. His voice didn't echo; the sound slipped into the darkness and was lost.

_I know everything about you, Axel._

"That's it!" Axel spread his hands and willed for his chakrams to come to him. But instead of feeling the rush of air and seeing the flames wheels spurt to life in his hands, nothing happened. Axel still there, mentally willing for his chakrams to come. But they didn't.

_They won't come to you. Pretty toys, but they won't come. _

"Where are my chakrams?" Axel demanded, visibly shaken. "What have you _done_?" Silence. Nothing moved. "Who are you?" Axel shouted. "What-" Something slammed hard into his chest; Axel was thrown back into a solid wall as the serated blade went straight through him, burying itself in the metal. Axel gasped for air, and then the pain hit. Electricity coursed through him, burning every inch of his body. He felt his insides being burned from the wave of energy. Blood spurted from the huge gap in his chest, and Axel screamed in pain. He writhed against the wall, grabbing weakly at the hilt as if he thought he could pull the huge sword out of his chest. He couldn't. Axel didn't have time to move before someone grabbed his arm, slamming his against the wall. Axel cried out as the unseen attacker slammed the needle through his elbow, through the cartilage and the bone, deep into the wall. Axel felt his bone snapping, felt warm blood oozing out from wound. Before he had time to move, his other arm was forced against the wall, and Axel cried out again as a similar needle was shoved through, pinning him like a butterfly to the wall.

"Why..?" Axel gasped. He could taste blood in his mouth now, felt the warmth of it soaking through his shirt and running down his legs. He couldn't breathe; his ribs strained against the sword in a feeble attempt to pull in air.

_Because I want to._

"Why…what…" Axel started again.

_We're not done yet._ Axel felt burning pain as a serrated knife slashed open his wrists, again and again, laying open the blue veins. He tried to pull in his other wrist, and found that he couldn't. He gasped as the knife hewed open his other wrist. Every pulse of his heart sent more blood pulsing out of the cuts. His veins sprayed out blood. _Can you feel the pain, Axel? Can you feel it?_

"Stop….please…"

_No._ Another bolt of energy rocketed through the pyro's body; his backbone stiffened as he shrieked, straining against the instruments pinning his helplessly to the wall. Blood red starbursts exploded in Axel's eyes as he screamed. His spine was rigid with pain, he heard and felt the audible cracking of his ribs as the sheer strength of the force shattered the bones. He gasped for air, the tortured lungs heaving. The energy stopped, and Axel slumped against the wall, sobbing in pain. His bloody chest heaved as he tried to breathe. _Good…but not good enough._ He thought he heard a footstep, then screamed in pain as a serrated needle pierced his chest. _You really only need one lung to breathe anyway._ Axel gasped for air, rigid in pain.

"What….." He gasped, trying to be calm. "What…..what do you…"

_..Want? Pain, Axel. That's all. _Axel felt little stabs of pain as his unseen torturer fastened small hooks in the bloody skin covering his shattered ribcage. _And lots of it._ Axel felt a ripping sensation, then zigzags of pain as the torturer began pulling on the hooks, peeling the flesh off of him. Axel screamed, struggling. Each writhing movement impaled his body more on the serrated sword, ripping his internal flesh. Blood welled out of his mouth as he screamed. The torturer silently continued pulling , stripping bloody ribbons of flesh off of her screaming victim. _Does it hurt that bad?_ The voice taunted him. More strips of skin tore off. _You coward._ Axel screamed as the left half of his ribcage was exposed, the white, shattered bones visible through the crimson blood. The hooks released, then plunged themselves into the flesh on his right side.

"Stop.." Axel gasped.

_Oh no, Axel. We've still got plenty of skin to peel off. Plenty of blood to spill. _The hooks began to strip off the skin. Axel writhed in agony, trying to break free. Blood ran in crimson streams from his mouth, spurted from his wrists, flooded from his stripped torso.

"I…I…" Axel tried to talk, but his voice was drowned out in his own shrieks. There was a sickening ripping sound as more flesh tore loose.

_What, Axel?_

"I…I hate…" Axel gasped for air. His whole body shook with pain, he was sobbing in agony. He couldn't stop shuddering as the blood gushed free of his broken body. The pain was extreme now; Axel couldn't stop shaking.

_Say it, Axel._ The hooks dug deep into his flesh, ripping it off of his broken ribs. Blood spilled out, spilled down the pyro's whole body, dying it sticky red. Axel was growing weak from loss of blood, from the overload of pain. He sagged against the wall, shuddering in pure agony.

"I hate you," Axel whispered, too weak to make his voice louder.

_Hate won't stop this-_ another wrenching tear of flesh. _You can't defeat me. You fail, Axel. You've lost._ Axel slumped against the wall, blood flowing from his mouth to mingle with the streams rushing from his chest. _It's over._

"It's over, Axel. Face it. You lost!" Roxas sat on top of Axel's chest, pinning the pyro to the floor, grinning his cheeky grin.

"I let you win!" Axel protested, struggling under his young friend's grip. Roxas smirked.

"It's over!"

"_It is not over!_" Axel's scream shook the darkness. Strength flooded over the pain, over the searing, agonizing, throbbing agony. Strength to fight back. His arm tore forward, ripping the needle out of the wall. Before the torturer could stop him, he had torn the other needle out of his elbow, freeing his other arm. "_I hate you!_" Axel shouted into the darkness. His hands found the bloody hilt, he pulled with all his strength. He felt the ripping, tearing feeling of the serrated blade pulling free; he ignored it, straining with all his might. The torturer grabbed the hilt, trying to force the blade back in. For a moment, the blood-stained, crippled Nobody and the unseen foe struggled in the darkness. Then the sword ripping free, out of Axel, and he was free. "I hate you!" Axel shouted again, swinging the blade. He heard a curse, a gasp. That was all he needed. Flames spurted up from the darkness as he swung again and again, hacking down at his would-be murderer.

_Axel….you…cannot…win…_

"Axel, please! Please…no!" It was a girl's voice, shouting up from the darkness below Axel. She was gasping. "Axel…please…it's…"

_Kill!_ The voice urged him. _Just kill! Now!_ Axel was raising the sword to deliver the final blow when he heard the sobbing, heard the girl's voice.

"It's…me…Axel? Don't you….it's me.." The bloody sword dropped by Axel's hands. He couldn't stand anymore, he was too weak. He knew that voice.

"Larxene?" And Axel fell forward. He hit the floor hard, blood splattering, and just lay there, letting his blood soak the floor under him. He was too weak to move, his consciousness was flickering. He heard a gasping and a scraping noise, then two arms picked him up and cradles his broken, stripped body in her lap. Tears splattered on his blood stained face.

"Axel…I'm so sorry….I didn't…" Larxene was crying. Blood ran from the shallow cuts on her arms and back.

"You?" Axel gasped, trying to speak through the blood. "You…?"

"I didn't know!" Larxene cradled him broken body against hers, his blood soaking through her coat. "Forgive me…I didn't know what I was doing to you…"

"Larxene..?" Axel still couldn't believe it. His heart was fluttering, failing.

"I'm sorry!" Larxene held his body close, crying. "Forgive me…please….Axel…forgive me…" He wasn't talking. "Axel…? Axel…no! Axel, please…please…"

The green eyes were shut.

…**So. Did he die..? Or is he still alive? HAHAH! Now you have to read another fanfic to FIND OUT!**


	2. Chapter 2: Connection

"Axel?" Roxas sat up in bed, gripping the sheets hard. He was gasping, and he didn't know why. Lightning ripped the sky outside to shreds, the light flashing through the windows. Thunder snarled above it all, like a low groaning. Roxas put a hand on his chest, trying to calm his ragged breathing. The bare skin under his hand felt so cold…so sticky. _What is wrong with me?_ Roxas thought in fear. _Fear. That's it._ He was scared. Scared for Axel. _Why? He's here…isn't he?_ Roxas suddenly felt a sharp stab of fear. _What if he's not?_ He had to know. The blonde haired Nobody swung out of the bed, sliding his feet into the hard black boots. He didn't take time to lace them up; the next moment, he wrenched open the door and was running down the hall. Rain splattered against the windows, lighting tore open the sky. Guided by the eerie white flashed of light, Roxas made his way down the hall, running, gasping for air. Axel's door. Where was it? He was panicking for some reason, he was so scared…All he wanted to do was the get in Axel's room, see his friend there. Roxas had the sudden urge to run into his friend's room and get under the blankets, hug the pyro, make Axel tell him it was ok.

_Where was it?_ He went down this hall hundreds of times, why could he find the door? Roxas stumbled to the end of the hall, grabbed the door handle, and tried to turn it. He couldn't. His hands kept slipping off. Sobbing for air and shuddering in fear, Roxas wiped his hands on his shorts, smearing off the cold sweat. Forcing himself to be calm, he grabbed the handle and turned it, oh so slowly. The door swung open, revealing the darkness of the pyro's room. Through the flashed of light coming through the wet windows, Roxas stumbled over the floor towards the bed. "Axel..?" Another flash of lightning. Roxas saw the bed. "Axel!" He screamed. The bed was empty, the sheets were thrown back. And the whole bed was splattered with dripping, red blood. "Axel? Axel, where are you?" Roxas dropped to his knees by the bed, his fingertips trailing in the blood dripping from the bed. The room was empty; it looked so peaceful, as if nothing was happened. Roxas was gasping again, his spine prickling from fear. "Axel!" he screamed into the rainy dark. "Come back!"

_It is not over!_

Roxas grabbed at his head, feeling the sharp voices reverberating inside his skull. They echoed in his brain, loud and clear. "What…" He started to say. _Where did that come from!_ Roxas thought in panic.

_I hate you!_

The words came again, smashing in on his brain, agonizingly loud and clear. Roxas cried out in pain, gripping his skull in anguish. _I know that voice!_ He realized, his eyes bright in the darkness. _It's Axel's…_

_I hate you!_

Roxas winced as the words stabbed into his head. He felt dizzy, felt pain. He slumped forward against the side of the bed, shutting his eyes and trying to squeeze the pain out of his head. He felt the warm blood soaking into his hair as it dripped off. "Axel…Axel.." he was almost sobbing now. "Stop it…please…stop it…" Lighting shredded the sky outside. "I need you!" Roxas shouted. "Axel, help me! Don't leave me…please don't leave me here!" His chest began aching, a swelling, numbing pain. "I want to be with you," Roxas sobbed, feeling the tears squeezing out. Suddenly he gasped in pain, grabbing at the bed with one hand, at his chest with the other. Under the bare skin, a deep, throbbing, lancing pain began stabbing him, repeatedly plunging its invisible, agonizing talons into his chest. Roxas's hand grabbed the bloody sheets in pain as he choked, gasping for air. "Ax…el?" He choked out. The pain was too much; Roxas slumped against the bloody bed, his blue eyes rolling up into his head. Slowly, slowly he slid to the floor, leaving a wide smear of blood behind him.

His eyes opened. Roxas stared up at the darkness, feeling dizzy. His chest ached a little, but the pain was gone. _What had happened?_ He wondered. He has heard Axel's voice in his head, then the pain….now, he was lying on his back in the pitch black. No noise, no nothing. "Axel?" he whispered. "Why.." Roxas slowly got up, the pain in his chest diminishing. He didn't feel dizzy anymore. "Axel?" He shouted into the dark nothingness. "Where are you?" Nothing. Roxas waited, feeling the cold darkness wrap around him. Suddenly, he was angry. "I want to see you!" he screamed. Light shot from his fingertips, licking up the darkness, blinding him with its brightness. And then.. then he saw them. A blonde girl with two bloody bangs was cradling…something. It was a mess of crimson red, sticky, scarlet blood, and the remains of a black coat. The girl was crying.

"Larxene?" Roxas asked, staring at her. She was bleeding from the shallow slits in her Organization XIII cloak. She looked up him, her blue eyes blank. Then they flickered.

"Roxas?" She asked, his voice choked. "Roxas?" He began running across the white light towards her, his black boots hammering the whiteness in little showers of silver sparks. The blonde Nobody dropped to his knees across from the girl, and that's when he saw the something's face.

"No…" Roxas couldn't believe it. "Axel..?" The red spikes were dripping blood, little streams of it ran from his mouth, bubbling at the lips. The eyes were shut. "Axel!" The blue eyes saw the ribcage, stripped of flesh, saw the jagged ends of the shattered bones, saw the ghastly little white balloon of a lung, heaving in the bloody puddle that was his friend's chest. "_No!_ Roxas screamed in agony, grabbing at his friend's body in pain. "No, Axel, _no_!" Axel's head was on his lap now, the blood was running down the boy's legs, feeling warm and sticky through his shorts. Larxene was sobbing now, gasping for air between her agonized cries. Roxas saw the wall, splashed with red, saw the blood lying in huge puddles on the floor. "What happened?" he demanded.

Larxene kept crying.

"Who did this to him?" Roxas almost screamed at her. Tears ran from his eyes as he cradled the bloody head on his lap. Larxene bent her head, the tears falling like rain. "Larxene..?" She shook her head, raised a hand to try to hold back the tears.

"He's…he's not.." She couldn't find the words. Roxas looked down, wincing as he saw the horribly broken and bloody body. Strips of flesh hung off the cracked remains of a ribcage, the broken end of a sharp needle stood out of his chest like a gruesome pennant of the torturer's accomplishments. Roxas shut his eyes, stroking the Nobody's face.

"No…Axel…you can't.." Roxas shut his eyes, letting the tears come. The horrible, grating grasping of Axel's struggling lung tore at his ears, mocking whatever hope he had.

"How did you get here?" Larxene asked softly.

"I don't know.." The younger boy closed his hand over the older one's. "I remembered Axel….it hurt…I was here." Larxene's tear stained face looked squarely up at him.

"That's…it…" she whispered.

"What?" Roxas shook his head. "I don't…understand.." Axel screamed. His spine arched in agony, his head thrown back, the pyro Nobody writhed in their arms, screaming his agony. Larxene grabbed at him, trying to hold him still. Blood bubbled up over her hands as she tried to hold the struggling Nobody still. The green eyes were open, burning green flame as they stared unseeing into the whiteness. The body jerked, twisted; Roxas heard the splintered bones grating against each other. The terrible shrieking filled the air.

"Axel…no!" Larxene clutched the broken, writhing body against her, sobbing brokenly. "I'm sorry…."

"What, _why_?" Roxas demanded. The girl shut her eyes and cradled the body against her, his screaming muffled in her cloak. "You…." Roxas stared at her, feeling the anger growing. "You?" Axel's screaming stopped abruptly with a strangled gargle, his body went horribly rigid….then limp.

"No!" Larxene gasped, letting the body slip. His mouth and eyes were frozen open, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. A glaze was spreading over the pupils. "You can't…don't…please!" Larxene begged.

"Axel..?" Roxas gripped his friend's hand, the blood from his wrist pulsing out over his fingers. "No….no, please…"

"Think!" Larxene barked, her voice harsh and strained. Axel lay on the bloody whiteness between them.

"What?" Roxas stared at her through teary eyes. Axel's hand was going cold.

"Think of a memory, of something dear to you back at the castle," Larxene ordered. "Say that you want to go back-" She lifted Axel's head in her hands. "Do it!" she ordered. Roxas shut his eyes, began thinking.

_Axel….Roxas…..both of them, sitting on the staircase, laughing…._ "I'm…trying…" Roxas gasped.

"Try! With all your might!" Larxene looked up at him worriedly.

_Axel and Roxas sitting on the staircase, laughing. _The picture swelled in Roxas's mind. He felt the pain of the effort crushing his skull, as if it was blowing itself up inside his skull, trying to explode out. He held his head in pain. _Axel and Roxas sitting on the staircase, laughing._ "Noo…" Roxas gasped. The pain had begun again. He grabbed at his throbbing chest. His eyes opened. "No…no.." he pleaded with the pain.

"Focus!" Larxene ordered. Axel stared lifelessly at the ceiling. "Do it! The pain is good…you want it…"

Roxas clutched at his chest, biting back the pain. _Axel and Roxas sitting on the staircase, laughing._ The image came, anc with it came the waves of pain. Roxas gasped for air through the dizzying pain. "What about….A……Ax…." he couldn't talk. The pain was strangling him. The image kept swelling. _Axel and Roxas sitting on the staircase, laughing._

Larxene cradled the head, looking at it with pain filled eyes. "I love you," she whispered, and pressed her lips hard against Axel's bloody mouth. For a moment, there was nothing. Then gold sparks began swirling up Larxene's body, from her feet, fingers, chest, head, even from her hair. They all ran does Larxene's cheeks, fusing through her lips into Axel's body. Through the crippling pain, Roxas watching as the sparks turned red…began running through Axel's body…

_Axel and Roxas sitting on the staircase, laughing._ Roxas couldn't see anymore; he was doubled over in pain, grabbing at his chest in agony. The image was getting larger….larger…he could hear Axel breathing again…he didn't have time to wonder why or how he was…there was a huge _snap_ somewhere in him, and he felt himself falling forward. The pain tore at him one last time…then faded. He dimly saw Larxene lying on the floor, motionless, as he and Axel flickered….then vanished…Leaving her behind.

"Roxas?"

_Do I know that voice?_ Roxas felt like he was swimming upward through an endlessly deep pool of water….no, maybe not swimming. It didn't feel like he was moving. Was he floating? That was it…just drifting up…up…

"Roxas?" A hand on his shoulder. The touch sent the water splattering in every direction, hauled Roxas out of the endless pool and into full consciousness. He opened his eyes too fast, and the bright light poured in. The blonde kid moaned, turned his head away from the light, blinking. Someone was standing next to the bed, his black glove clear against the wrinkled white sheet. Roxas squinted up, and found himself looking at Vexen. The blonde scientist looked down at him.

"Do you know who I am?" He asked.

"Ve….Vexen.." The words were thick and long. Roxas found it was hard to say the two syllables. It was more like sliding something out of his mouth than saying something.

"That's right. Do you know where you are?" Vexen's voice was aggravatingly calm.

Roxas twisted his head on the pillow, blinked. "I'm……..I for….get.." Were his eyelids always so heavy?

Vexen nodded. "You're in the infirmary at Castle Oblivion. You've been out for a couple hours. Do you remember anything before?"

Roxas tried to think, and couldn't. He shook his head in defeat. And then he _did_ remember something. "Ax…el?"

Vexen pointed. "He's in the other bed. We found you two in his room, in a puddle of blood. You don't have a scratch, but Axel…" He trailed off.

"Is he…okay?" Roxas managed.

Vexen shrugged. "He'll…live," he said carefully. "But……." He paused, tapped his hand on the bed, and started to turn away.

"Vex..en!" Roxas tried to make his voice loud. "Tell me…."

Vexen paused and looked over his shoulder. "It's a close call," was all he said. And then he was gone. The door shut behind him. Roxas turned his head to look over. Lying on a white bed under the white light was Axel, lying rigidly under a sheet. His tattered, blood-soaked coat was on a chair next to the bed. Someone had washed the blood off his face, and his hair was wet. A pile of bloody bandages lay on the floor under the chair. The Nobody was sleeping, his chest rising evenly.

"Axel?" Roxas whispered. He smiled tiredly. Funny…nothing hurt. He was just…so tired. Axel was safe. He was going to make it. Roxas's eyes shut. He didn't even remember Larxene or the whiteness.

"Axel?"

"Mmh?"

"…I missed you." Roxas massaged his forehead. "I never knew how good of friends we were until I almost lost you."

"I know." Axel lay under the window on the bed, where he had lain for the past two weeks as his body slowly, slowly knit, as the skin grafts on his chest slowly mended together the flesh. Now he lay with the sheet folded back, the sunlight playing on the horrific scars on his bare chest. He stared straight up at the ceiling, thinking. Roxas sat next to him as he had faithfully done for two weeks, content to be in the prescreens of his best friend.

"So.." Roxas said slowly. "Larxene…did that to you, didn't she?"

Axel took his time answering. "Yes.." The broken chest rose slowly. "She did." Larxene was missing from the Castle. Her room had been found empty, with little drops of blood on the sheets. Other than that, there was no clue to her parting. The other Nobodies shrugged the whole thing off as a mystery, didn't ask questions. They left Roxas and Axel alone and forgot about Larxene. "We need to get her back," Axel said softly. "She….we need too.."

"She saved your life." Roxas finished. "That kiss…that was what made you come alive again." Axel hadn't remembered anything that had gone on since Roxas showed up; over the weeks, Roxas had filled him in on what had happened.

"How ironic," Axel said softly. He shut his eyes for a moment. "She was the one who did this…and she was the one who saved us."

"I don't understand though," Roxas said. "Why…why did the memory take us back here?" Axel shook his head wearily on the pillow.

"I don't know." There was silence for a moment. Then, "……how did you get into…wherever we were?" Axel asked.

"I kept on hearing your voice, thinking of you," Roxas admitted.

"What was I saying?" Axel asked in curiosity.

"It's not over," Roxas remembered. "I hate you. Over and over."

"That's what I told Larxene," Axel said softly. "I remembered you…I remembered us wrestling." He grinned wearily. "But yea…that's what I said."

"Memories," Roxas said slowly. "You remembered me, I heard you. And then…Larxene had me remember something, and we came back." Axel looked at him.

"What did you remember?" He asked.

"You and me, sitting on the staircase, laughing. I forgot what we were laughing about though!" Roxas hugged his knees and grinned. "Good memory, huh?"

Axel smiled. "I remember what we were laughing at…I think. Wasn't it…wasn't it after…" he paused. "Guess I don't remember," he said ruefully. Roxas laughed, and Axel joined in for a moment. Laughing hurt; he winced and felt at his chest. "There's one thing…" he said slowly. "Larxene wasn't in that memory…was she?"

Roxas was still for a moment. "No. It was just you and me." His blue eyes narrowed. "And Larxene didn't come back.."

"I don't know why or what it means," Axel said slowly. "But somehow….we're connected by memories?"

Roxas shook his head. "I don't know…but I think you might be right. But how…I don't know how that works.." He rubbed his forehead.

"You're starting to look like Xemnas," Axel told him with a smirk. Roxas sniffed.

"Am not." He got to hit feet and pulled the white sheet up over Axel's bare chest. "Time for you to go to sleep," he informed the red head.

"Do I have to?" Axel grinned weakly.

Roxas tucked his friend's arms under the sheet, carefully avoiding the lines of stitches in his wrists and elbows. "Yes you do. Don't argue with your nurse _or_ your best friend." He rested the sheet gently over Axel's patched up body. "See you later?"

The pyro's eyes were flickering. "Yea. See you later." Roxas started walking towards the door. "Roxas?" The blonde turned around. Axel's face was framed in white light from the window. He was smiling. "Thanks."

"For what?" Roxas grinned.

"For…being here, for me." Axel's chest swelled slowly as he chose words. "I don't….I don't know why I would have tried to live, I guess…..if I didn't have a friend like you…" Roxas felt the tears coming; he tried to hold them back. Axel's green eyes flickered. "So thanks. For sticking with me. For being Roxas."

"You're welcome." The blonde Nobody grinned. "And thanks….for being my best friend."

"Anytime." The red head nodded. "Friends forever, right?" He held out his hand, in a fist. Roxas knocked knuckles with him, like he had done countless times.

"Forever."

_Pity about Axel._ The blue-black cloaked swirled over the whiteness, its shadow turning the whiteness to pitch black. The black eyes noted Larxene's body, lying motionless in the white. The darkness grabbed at the Nobody's boots, then slithered up over her, wiping out all traces of her to the human eye. Oh, the cloaked one could still see; the darkness was of her own making, her own essence. She still saw the black-cloaked body, sprawling over the pitch black. The blue-black cloak stopped next to the Nobody girl as the cloaked figure looked down at the face. A few golden sparks danced over Larxene's chests, over the hole where a heart should be. The last ones. _You fool_. The black eyes looked critically at the lifeless body. _You would die for him? This complicates matters._ The figure heaved a mental sigh. _I might actually have to give back some Force, won't I? _A long white hand reached down, the fingertips pressed into the girl's chest. A few black sparks wound down the fingers and into the girl's body. After a moment, Larxene began to breathe. _You deal pain,_ the figure mentally told the Nobody. _But it's not time to connect. Not yet._

The Nobody didn't respond. Her eyes stared sightlessly up into the darkness.

_You'll wake up soon enough. _The blue-black figure turned. _Very soon._

"Axel?" Roxas opened the door and peered around it nervously. "Axel, wake up!" He hissed. The blonde slipped in, clutching a heavy, leather bound book to his chest. His face was almost as white as the door he shut behind him. Slowly, he tiptoed over to the bed where the pyro was sleeping. He sat down on the chair, and squeezed Axel's hand. "Axel, wake up.." The green eyes flickered, then Axel moaned and shifted.

"Roxas?" He said sleepily. "What-"

The blonde squeezed the hand to silence his friend. "I found something, Axel." The blue eyes were grim. "Something that might what's been happening."

Axel noticed the book. "What….where'd you get that?" He asked.

"The library. It was shoved way in the back of one of the shelves." Roxas rubbed some of the dust off of it. "And I started reading it. It's…it's some kind of document on supernatural forces, or something like that. It takes about magic and stuff like that, anyway. I was about to stop reading it, and that's when-"

"Wait." Axel pulled his hand free. "Help me…help me sit up. I want to see." Roxas set aside the book and helped the red head to slowly, painfully sit up. Roxas stood up the pillow against the wall, and Axel sat back against it with a wince. "Ok, sorry Roxas. I'm ready." The blonde flipped open the book, fingering through the dusty pages.

"Here." He tapped a page, and angled himself and the book so that Axel could see it. Roxas began to read. "_Life Force; A force possessed by all living sentients, the will to live, a soul-to-soul connection. This connection is maintained and built by sheer force of will, love, or memories._" Roxas ran his finger down the page. "_Life Force is the sheer determination and effort to live. Sometimes, groups of people that share memories or love will have their Life Force's connected, allowing them to sense each other's feelings, emotions, or even _reconnect_ with their Life Force companions._" Roxas looked up into Axel's eyes. "That's how we did it. That's how I joined you and Larxene! We share a Life Force."

Axel rubbed his forehead. "Memories," he said softly. "It makes sense. But remembering us _here_, you got us both back to Castle Oblivion.."

"..but I didn't remember Larxene. And she didn't come back," Roxas finished.

"I wonder," Axel said slowly. "If you _had_ remembered her….would she have come back with us?" Roxas was still for a minute, thumbing the book.

"I don't know," he admitted. "Do you love Larxene?" He asked pointedly.

Axel looked sharply at him, then grinned a little. "Whatever. Why?"

"Because…if you love her, then your Life Force's are joined. And that kiss…." Roxas opened the book. "Here's where that all fits in." He ran a finger down the page. "_Life Force can be passed from one sentient to another. A transferring of the Force can save another beings life, if their own Life Force is fading. Life Force will leave if the sentient is dying, or has consciously or unconsciously let go of the will to live. In the case of a transfer of Life Force, touch is necessary between the giver and the receiver. Sparks of Life Force will leave the giver and go into the other sentient, allowing them to live._" Roxas stopped reading. "When she kissed you, I saw the sparks. Larxene was giving you here Life Force."

Axel shut his eyes and tipped his head against the wall. "No.." he whispered. His fist clenched. "No."

"What?" Roxas asked worriedly.

Something white and wet slid out of the corner of Axel's eyes, back down over his cheek. "Then…if she gave up her Life Force….that means she's dead, doesn't it?"

"No!" Roxas almost shouted. "No it doesn't! Axel, she may have given you the Life Force, but that doesn't mean-"

"Then what _does_ it mean, Roxas?" Axel said angrily. "What did you see before we left?"

Roxas was silent. Then, "She wasn't moving," he said softly. "Larxene wasn't moving anymore." Axel groaned, and Roxas took his hand in silent comfort. "Axel? Why did she hurt you?"

"She didn't mean to." The silver trail of a tear was drying on Axel's cheek. "She didn't…it's like it wasn't her…."

That hit Roxas hard. His eyes widened. "Axel? What if it _wasn't_ Larxene?"

Axel's eyes opened, stabbing the ceiling. "What do you mean," he whispered. "It…she…whoever did this…turned into Larxene. I almost killed her."

Roxas thought for a moment. "Does anyone else have a hold on her Life Force?"

Axel rubbed his forehead and frowned. "I don't…she doesn't have any other friends that us. I don't think anyone would have a hold in her life." He was still for a moment. "Unless-" he started, then stopped. Roxas noted the look on his face.

"Axel?"

"There's one other who could have control over her." Axel's eyes were hard and clear.

"Who?"  
"Herself," Axel said clearly.

Roxas shook his head. "Axel, what do you mean? Do you mean that Larxene _meant_ to do what she did? Because if you are, that doesn't…make…" Roxas's voice trailed off. Axel turned his head and looked him straight in the face. Roxas paled with understanding. "You don't mean Larxene," he whispered. "You mean her _Somebody_."

"Exactly." The two Nobodies sat in stillness for a moment, digesting the idea. Axel's hand in Roxas's was warm, uncomfortably warm. He was angry, and the heat of his skin showed it. The blue eyes of the younger boy were eerily bright.

"So what do you want us to do? To save Larxene, I mean," Roxas asked softly, looking over into Axel's eyes.

Axel sighed painfully. "We…have to go back…"

"What?" Roxas exclaimed, staring at him in shock. "You can't be serious! Go back into the black? Axel…what if _she's_ there? What's going to happen to you?" Axel still wasn't very strong, and Roxas didn't want to see him shredded again.

"We have to get Larxene back!" Axel insisted. "I don't care what else happens…but we've got to save her." He saw the dubious look in Roxas's eyes. "Roxas…please? Please come with me?"

Roxas was scared. He didn't want to go back there, didn't want to face the far again. And he didn't want to see Axel get hurt. He wanted to make the pyro stay here, wanted to make sure that he was safe. But Larxene needed them, needed Axel at least. And wherever Axel went, Roxas wasn't far behind. The blonde winked. "Sure I'm coming! I'll stick with you, no matter what."

"Thanks." Axel didn't need to say anything more. Both of them new what he meant. The pyro let go of Roxas's hand , and with a groan, started to get out of the bed.

"What are you doing?" Roxas asked, steadying his friend. He knew better than the cross Axel when he was in this mood.

"Getting dressed. I can't show up like this." Axel reached for the tattered remains of his cloak and began pulling it on.

Roxas smirked. "That won't do you much good," he pointed out. "It won't even cover you up all the way." He laughed at the look on Axel's face. "I'll be right back." He dashed out, shutting the door. Axel grinned, retracting his arms from the cloak.

"What did I ever do to deserve you, Roxas?" he asked softly. The cloak was dropped on the bed, and Axel ran his finger over the hem of it fondly. He'd have to fix it, one day. The door swung open, and Roxas shut it behind him. He had a bundle under one arm.

"Got it." The blonde dropped it on the bed, and pulled a grey shirt out of it. He tossed it, and Axel caught it.

"Just wanting to know, who's is this?" Axel asked skeptically, wincing as he pulled it on. He was carefully not to bump the skin grafts sewed onto him.

"The shirt? That's mine." Roxas passed Axel an Organization cloak. "That's Demyx's," he smirked. Axel groaned as he pulled it on. "We're just borrowing, right?" Roxas teased.

"Whatever." Axel zipped it shut. It smelled like hair gel, but the black leather felt comfortable and familiar. "Start remembering." Roxas groaned as he sat on the edge of the bed. Reluctantly, he called up the scene where Larxene kissed Axel, and focused on that mental picture. Axel, standing beside him, remembered the dark, the searing pain. The memory was too vivid, too alive, and he winced. He took a deep breathe, forcing himself to remember what it was like. In a few minutes, the pain started as the Life Force began connecting them and the location they so desired.

"It's happening." Roxas felt at his chest. Axel put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's ok," he said softly, focusing his energy on that image in his brain. "We'll be there soon." The images blurred before their eyes, growing clearer and clearer. Roxas almost heard Larxene crying again, almost saw the sparks. Axel _felt_ the agony, and his hand clenched Roxas's shoulder hard. The throbbing increased, turning into a drilling pain high up in their chests. To Roxas's surprise, it wasn't as severe as before. It still hurt - his hand was white from pressing against the pain - but he wasn't sick. The drilling pain increased, lancing through them for one moment. Then there was a wave of shimmering dizziness, and the two mental images vanished.

"Roxas? Axel?" Vexen opened the door to the infirmary. It was empty. A tattered cloak lay on the unmade bed, a dusty old book lay on the chair, and the light from the window was illuminating the white room. But Axel and Roxas were gone.


	3. Chapter 3:Sidetracked

Noise. That was the first thing Axel sensed. Then the color began coming in around them, filling in the street that the two Nobodies lay face down on. Axel groaned and pushed himself up slowly. "Roxas…?"

"Mmf." The blonde was lying sprawled out over the brown street, his face pressed into the pavement. He moaned as he got to his feet, brushing dirt off of the black uniform. He shook his head dizzyingly, looked around. "Where _are_ we?" He asked in confusion.

"I didn't work."

"What?"

Axel sucker punched the younger Nobody. "The memory didn't work. We're not back where Larxene is."

"But…it had to work!" Roxas protested. "It worked before…I was sure that it would now…" He held his aching head. Axel shook his head.

"Maybe it only works if you're _invited_ into the blackness," he said softly.

"No, that can't be. Because-"

"- because you got in before. Right." Axel nodded. He sighed, stretched, and started off down the street. "Might as well find out where we are."

"Guess so." Roxas jogged after the pyro, glancing at the city around them. Metallic skyscrapers rose up into the pale blue sky, the pale but glaring white sunlight streaming in around them. Neon signs hung from some of the buildings, but Roxas couldn't read them. Large posters of black and red were pasted on the sides of the buildings, screaming advertisements to the crowds of people pacing the metal sidewalks that sprawled at the feet of the giant buildings. Tubes of pale grey plasma stood at the street corners, serving as glow lamps when it got dark. The hum of machinery, and the low rumble of voices filled the air. Smoke curled up in lazy tendrils from the tops of the buildings, drifting up towards the silvery clouds floating high up in the sky. The two Organization members sidled their way through the masses, looking in bewilderment around them.

"What world _is_ this?" Axel asked, rubbing his forehead wearily.

"I have no clue." Roxas zipped up his cloak all the way, careful to keep close to Axel. He always felt safer in his friend's presence.

Axel elbowed him playfully in the shoulder. "You got us into a real nice place this time, didn't you?"

"Me?" Roxas floundered. "You can't honestly blame me for this!"

"Oh yes I can." Axel shouldered his way onto the sidewalk, heading for a low buildings with a glaringly bright blue neon sign. "Come on, keep up." He pulled Roxas up alongside him, not wanting to lose his friend in the crowd. The two leather-cloaked Nobodies forged through the milling people, the red head leading.

"Axel?"

"Yea?"

"Where are you going?" Roxas asked, matching Axel's quick pace.

"That building." Axel pointed to the bright neon sign. They were crossing the street towards it already.

"Why _that_ building? What is it?" Roxas was curious.

"Cantina." Axel sounded too happy, Roxas noticed.

"How do you know that?" The blonde asked. "Do I _want_ to know?" he added teasingly.

"It's called 'looking in the windows'," Axel grinned. He opened the door, his hair purple in the glaring light of the sign. "Head on in." Roxas sidled past him into the cantina. There wasn't much to see; a dozen black table and chairs stood alond the front wall by the windows, illuminated under a score of red lights, and a big brown bar stretched along the back. Half a dozen people were slouched at the bar. Axel sauntered over to the bar and rapped on in. The skinny little barkeeper turned around and asked the two something. Neither Roxas or Axel knew what he was saying. "Hey, I need a shot of that." Axel pointed to the picture menu suspended from the ceiling.

The barkeeper chattered something back, and pointed up at the menu.

"No, not that. _That_." Axel pointed again. The barkeeper looked up. "Yea, that one. Third from the end." The barkeeper tapped a picture and looked back at Axel. The red head barely avoided a face palm. "No. The one to the right!" He ignored Roxas's smirking from behind him, and about a minute later, the barkeeper got the message. He tapped the right picture, got Axel's approval, and started towards the machines. Axel turned on Roxas, who was barely stifling his laughing. "Ok, what's so funny?"

Roxas crossed his arms. "You _do_ know that next you're going to have to figure out how much you owe him, don't you?"

"Oh crud." The barkeeper made his way back, set the shot on the bar, and held out a hand. Axel didn't even try bartering. He dug in the cloak pocket, and dropped about a dozen silver munny in the man's hand. The pyro snatched up the shot and pointed. "C'mon, let's head for the corner."

"Demyx is going to throw a fit," Roxas observed.

"Yea, that he missed out on a cantina. He'll never miss the money," Axel snickered.

"What about me?" Roxas asked as they headed for the corner table. "Don't I get anything?"

Axel rapped him on the head. "You're underage. Minors can't drink beer."

"Yea, well when you get beer, you're supposed to drink _responsibly_," Roxas protested. "And you never do."

"Fine." Axel paused beside a sleeping man hunched over the bar, and snatched his full glass. He passed it off to Roxas. "Have fun." With a groan, he slid into one of the seats. Roxas sat opposite him, playing with the glass.

"So why are we here?" Roxas asked. Axel looked out the window at the bright sunlight.

"I don't know. Why _are_ we here?" He winked at Roxas. "Why are we in the cantina? It's the best place to get information. Besides-" he raised the shot glass. "-I need some of this." He hunched over the table. "Look, Roxas, I've been thinking. Why did we end up here?"

"I don't-"

"Exactly. It worked before, it should have worked again. Unless someone was tampering with the Life Force connection." Axel rubbed his forehead.

Roxas was silent for a minute. "Do…do you think it was.. whoever was controlling Larxene? Her Somebody?"

Axel frowned. "It might have been. Only….well, whoever it was didn't have a reason to send us here, to keep us out of the blackness."

"No.." Roxas contradicted. "She, or he, I guess, might not have wanted us to find Larxene. So they sent us here."

Axel shoot his spiky head. "No. In that place, the torturer has complete control." He winced at the memory. "He…could have done anything he wanted to do. To all of us."  
Roxas tapped his fingers on the glass. "Then…if it wasn't _whoever_ then who _was_ it?"

Axel raised his eyebrows. "Larxene herself, maybe?"

Roxas looked surprised. "You really think so?"

Axel shrugged. "We're all connected by the Life Force, aren't we? She could have tampered in some way….maybe."

"So..," Roxas said slowly. "_If_ it was Larxene, then there must be something here that we're supposing to find out…right?"

"That's the idea." Axel took a quick drink. "I'd like to know two things. Where is this place, and who's in charge here?"

"Newcomers, huh?" Both of the Nobodies looked up. A tall man with glasses and black hair stood next to their table, a coat over one arm. "Sorry," he said quickly. "I just was passing when I heard your comment, guess you were new here."

"Yea. Just got her. We….sort of wandered in here. Got no clue where we are," Roxas told him, glancing at Axel sidelong.

"You're in Dusk City." The man shrugged. "It's sorta on the edge of nowhere, if you know what I mean."

"Guess we do," Axel said slowly. "You been here long?"

"Couple years," the man said lightly. "Not a bad place, once you get the language down and get familiar with neon." He laughed.

Roxas grinned along with him. "Say, who really is in charge of Dusk City?"

The man's face went grim. "Depends what you mean. We got a consol; he's the political leader. But-" He broke off.

"Who else?' Axel pressed.

The man looked around, then leaned closer in to the two. "There's an underworld to Dusk City, if you know what I mean. And Reanel Katrix is in charge of that."

"Reanel Katrix?" Axel repeated. "Who's he?"

"_She_ is the most feared crime lord ever to come to Dusk City," the man smirked. "Everyone knows her, and nobody crosses her, not the police, not the consol, not _anyone._ She got so many henchmen and gangs under her thumb that she's practically invincible."

"She get out much?" Roxas asked casually.

The man looked over his shoulder again. "No. Not she doesn't. Reanel's crippled, uses her money to control assassins, then uses the assassins to control others, and so on. So even though she's physically out of it, Reanel's managed to hold Dusk City for years. It's all in the money, if you know what I mean. She's active in so many circles that she never seems short on the cash. Almost every illegal sale is giving a chunk of the dough to Reanel, she's that involved. Katrix is like a weed; she's got her roots everywhere, she's too big to pull up now. She's pretty dark, if you know what I mean."

"No. We don't," Axel said softly.

"Well.. I don't _know_ anything, really," the man stammered, leaning very close. "But rumor has it that Reanel found a portal into the darkness, and uses it. She can control the darkness when she's in there, or so the rumors say."

"A dark portal?" Axel reapeted.

The man abruptly pulled up short. "I've said too much." He gathered up his coat and abruptly headed away from their table, nonchalantly heading out the door.

"He's got that right!" Roxas murmured. "But I'm glad he opened his mouth."

"This shines some light on it.." Axel muttered. "Reanel…"

Roxas looked up at him. "Reanel Katrix. Odd name, isn't it?"

"Yea." Axel looked grim. "It's even stranger when she spell it out. R-E-A-N-E-L. Got it memorized?" He added with a smirk. He never could resist.

The letters sank in on Roxas, and his face when white. " Two E's, an A, one L, N, and an R." He looked up at Axel, and his blue eyes looked scared. "An an X, and that spells 'Larxene'!"

"I know." Axel's face was a fearful sight. "I think we've found our man. Woman," he corrected himself.

"But.." Roxas rubbed his forehead. "She's crippled. So how-"

"If she did find a dark portal," Axel interrupted, "Then once she was inside it, her physical body wouldn't matter. Darkness does that to you. She could be a perfectly normal person…or stronger."

"I guess…I guess we need to try again," Roxas said softly. "If Larxene was the one playing with the Life Force, then we've found out what she wanted us to find.. I guess."

"Time to call up a memory." Axel folded his arms behind his head and closed his eyes. The darkness swirled in his memory again. Roxas pushed away the full glass, and shut his eyes. The next time the barkeeper looked over at the table, the two were gone.


	4. Chapter 4: Retraction

"We're here." Axel and Roxas were lying on their back in the darkness, hand in hand. Axel opened his eyes, feeling the fear of the darkness sweeping back over him.

"Mmhmm." Roxas slowly got up, feeling for balance in the darkness. He heard Axel get up behind him. "Let's see where Larxene is," Roxas said grimly. Light shot from his open hands, swirling around them, swallowing the darkness, and turning it dazzling white. The two blinked in the brilliant glare, looking around them.

"That's impressive," Axel said dryly.

"Thanks." Roxas looked around him. "But where's-"

"Larxene!" Axel began running across the white, his boots sending up clouds of silver sparks. Then Roxas saw her too, lying on her back in the white. He ran after his friend, arriving beside the female girl a minute after Axel had dropped by here. "Something's wrong," Axel whispered. Larxene's eyes stared straight up, not seeing either of them.

"She's dying. Her Life Force is almost gone. She must have spent it tampering," Roxas said softly. "She needs more."

"Maybe if we both gave her some…" Axel started.

_It won't work._

Both of them heard the voice in their heads at the same instant; they whirled. A blue black cloaked figure came rippling through the whiteness. Blackness melded with the white in her wake. But instead of wiping it out, an eerie grey light fell over them, like a huge shadow. _Larxene is gone, unless if I give her life._ The figure kept coming. _You are both going to join her._

"Not a chance." Axel was on his feet now. He spread his hands, and in a whirl of flame, the chakrams spun in his hands. "Roxas!" The blonde understood. He took Larxene's hand, and _willed_. Brown sparks whirled down his hands and into Larxene's body. It wasn't much, but just enough to bring her back. The eyes cleared, her head turned.

"Roxas?"

_A waste of Life Force._ The cloaked figure kept coming. _You are all going to die._ Axel shouted and hurled both chakrams at her. The went straight through the figure, vanishing in a poof of flame. The chakrams were useless. _Fool!_ A sword shimmering into the cloaked one's hand, and before Axel could move, the sword had slashed through him. Axel gasped in pain as the sword severed the rows of stiches, grasping his arm as the blood welling out of him.

"Axel!" Roxas shouted. He bounded over Larxene's body, racing towards the bleeding pyro. The cloaked figure intercepted him, stepping in between him and the redhead. Roxas barely dodged the sweep aimed at his head; the sword point swept his forehead, and blood spurted over his face. With a cry of rage, Roxas summoned the two key blades, and dropped into a battle stance.

_You little hero. What chance do you stand against me?_ The cloaked figure hacked savagely at the blonde, and white light erupted as the blades clashed. The cloaked figure whirled expertly, catching Roxas off his guard. The figure's sword hacked in a brutal backslash towards the Nobody.

"Roxas!" Axel dove in a low tackle, knocking his friend over backwards. The sword barely missed Roxas as they hit the ground, Axel spurting blood. The sword had missed the blonde, and has found its mark on the red head instead. The sword point has ripped one of the skin grafts in half; blood was beginning to run out of the wicked slash, bubbling down the front of the cloak in a crimson stream. The Nobody cried out in pain.

_You can't defeat me._ The bloody sword twirled expertly, concealing itself under the cloak. _You are weak! _The figure turned towards Larxene. Axel gasped in pain, but managed to pull himself upright. With a weak sputter of flame, his chakrams appeared. _Back for more?_ the cloaked one's voice taunted inside his head. The sword flared out in a brilliant arc of bloody metal, but Axel was faster. He ducked under the blade, swinging at the cloaked body. The chakrams singed he blue-black cloth, but otherwise did no damage. Roxas wiped the blood out of his eyes, rolling to his feet. The twin key blades appeared in a flash. The two friends slowly moved in on the cloaked figure in the greyness, smoke rising around them as they circled. _Idiots. Both of you._ The figure moved like lightning; it spun to one side in a flash of blue-black, and the sword followed through, cleaving the air where Roxas had stood only moments before. The Nobody dodged, danced in close to her, and hacked with both blades.

To his astonishment, both of them cleaved the cloth, and kept going. They didn't even hit the figure's body. The cloaked one seemed to be laughing inside their heads as she twirled, bringing the sword around in a deadly arc. Roxas felt the blade slipping between his ribs as it seared past, felt the blood spurting ,then felt the pain. He gasped, staggering back. Blood spurted from the wound.

"Roxas!" Axel made a move to help the blonde, but their opponent stepped between the two, bloodied sword readied. Axel gave a scream of rage and with an eruption of flame shot forwards. The fire raged around the two other them, metal rang on metal, then there was a blinding, grating shriek as the two dead locked in the middle of the fire. Roxas, from his bent over position, couldn't see what was happening, until Axel's body was flung out of the fiery circle, landing hard. Roxas heard the _snap_ as his weakened ribs crunched. Axel moaned, then lay still. The figure stepped out of the other side; the cloak was viciously rent, and the edges were stained black with something dark and sticky, but Roxas didn't see anymore damage.

"He's invincible.." Roxas whispered, instinctively calling up the twin blades.

_I told you once. You can't beat me in my own element._ The figure spread its arms wide.

"We'll see about that!" Roxas dove, hitting the floor in a summersault, taking the figure by surprise. He launched himself up under the figure's range, driving home one of the key blades. Black blood spraying across him as the sharp key blade hit home, then to his shock and horror, the figure reached down and yanked out the blade, and with a twist, sent the Nobody skidding across the grey. Roxas gasped for air, startled and confused. He scrambled to his feet, his bleeding side screaming in agony. But the figure wasn't coming for him. It turned towards the girl instead.

"You.." Larxene whispered. The Life Force had restored her to life, but she was still painfully weak. It was an effort to stand up straight. Now, with both of her friends wounded, and she herself defenseless, the Savage Nymph began backing slowly away.

"Who…who are you?" Axel asked, wincing as he pushed himself painfully off the ground. Blood oozed out over the greyness from under him.

_I am Reanel. _ The figure halted a few yards away. The black swirled around her feet.

"Reanel Katrix.." Roxas said slowly. "So you did find a portal to the Darkness.."

_Darkness? _Reanel's voice was mocking inside their heads. _Oh you poor fools. This isn't the darkness. This is just a taste, a shadow of what the true power and expanse of Darkness is. I did find a portal, a portal that lead me here, into the Dusklands. I control this.. this is my world now. This darkness wills to me!_

"No…no…it can't be.." Larxene backed away, fear in her eyes. Then she stopped, her face alive with hate. "It's _you_! You made me do it! You, you, _you_!" She was almost screaming in anger and frusteration.

_I can control you_. Reanel seemed to be smiling under her hood. _You and I are joined. You and I are one._

"No!" Larxene's eyes were full of hot tears. "I am myself! I am not you!"

"Then you _are_ her Somebody??" Roxas asked, his voice cold with dread.

_How clever of you, little child_. Reanel's voice was scornful. _Larxene and I are one.. Or we soon will be. _Reanel raised a hand and pointed it at the girl.

"Stop it!" Axel summoned up one of his chakrams, and stepped in front of Larxene. Blood splattered the front of the cloak. "What do you want?"

_Pain. I want it all. It's my life, my essence. It's me._ Something like a mental chuckle shivered through all their minds. _I admit, torturing you, Axel, generated a considerable amount of pain. And by harnessing Larxene's Life Force and using her to do it…that was brilliant, you must admit. But that's noting to what I'm about to do.._

"What are you going to do?" Roxas demanded. The three began shrinking away from her, Axel and Roxas guarding Larxene's weakened body.

_Complete myself._ The hood turned towards Larxene. _Come to me, Larxene. Complete me!_ White light shot from her fingertips, cutting straight through the two Nobodies, and wrapping itself around Larxene.

"No!" Larxene screamed, struggling in the grasp of the light.

"Let her go!" Flames spurted from Axel's body, turning the twilight grey to crimson-streaked red.

_Make me._ Reanel made a gesture with her free hand, and instantly, the two male Nobodies screamed. Axel fell to his knees, gripping his head in pain. He heard the torturer's voice, felt the searing agony of the flesh being torn off his ribcage. All the pain, all the fear, it all came back, crowing into his mind. Axel felt the helplessness, felt the feeling of blood surging out of him, felt the searing agony as his Life Force fled. Roxas was bent double in pain, trying to stop the fear crowding in him. Reanel had brought back the vivid memory of the terror he had felt for Axel, and now it swept through his body, terrifying him. He cried out in mental pain, trying to stop the crushing fear. Larxene struggled, trying to pull away from the light. Reanel gave the two screaming Nobodies a smile, then the hood looked at Larxene. _Come to me, Larxene. You belong to me now. I admit, I borrowed your Life Force before, took so little of it that you barely noticed. But enough with games - it's time to make me complete. Give up…just come to me and end your misery._

"No…._no_.." Larxene protested weakly. She dug her heels into the grey under her, struggling, fighting back as the light invaded her body. Her Somebody was calling to her…pulling her in. A terrible coldness begin seeping up her spine, spreading through her. The coldness of Nothingness. "You…can't…" Larxene gasped. The cold white tendrils plunged deep into her body.

_Oh yes. Yes I can._ Little golden sparks began ripping loose of Larxene's body, flying across the white light and into Reanel's body. She was sucking, tearing Larxene's very life out of her, and the Nobody couldn't stop it. She tried to escape the light, and found herself trapped. All she could do was stand there, willing her Life Force to stay, and watch it slowly pull free and enter in Reanel. The horrible coldness was stronger now, poisoning her very blood. Larxene weakly tried to pull her Life Force back, and screamed in agony as it was ripped out. Axel and Roxas were still bent under the crushing pain of the mental images, writhing as their fears and pains invaded their minds. Roxas felt the cold fear clutching at him, invading his mind. He couldn't move, couldn't breathe. The stark terror was poisoning his blood. He felt himself falling on the floor, writhing as his body slowly went cold. Axel was just the opposite, the burning, blazing agony searing his whole body by way of his mind. He could barely see Larxene, saw the sparks of Life Force fluttering out of her, saw the Nobody trying to fight the light. Reanel stood there, coldly watching as her Nobody died, smiling a little as the Life Force fused into her. Her strength was coming back, and the pain around her was increasing. As soon as this pesky Nobody was gone, her power would be too much for the other two. Axel took a desperate gamble; he shut his eyes, reached into his mind for the connection with Roxas, and brought up an image.

Roxas and Axel saw the image at the exact same time. Roxas and Axel sitting on a white staircase in the brilliant sunlight, laughing.

"I'm glad I know you," Roxas said after a minute, sucker-punching Axel's shoulder.

"Yea, well, be careful. That's the only arm I've got." Axel ruffled the blonde hair.

"So…guess we're friends now, huh?"

"Something like that." Axel crossed his ankles. "But don't get too friendly. Might make me think I'm going soft."

"Yea, sure." Roxas grinned at him.

"Stop smirking," Axel told him without opening his eyes.

"Make me." Roxas ducked as Axel grabbed at him. He tried to run down the stairs, but Axel caught him, and hauled him back on the stairs in a headlock. The pyro's knuckles grated over the blonde hair as the younger Nobody laughed and squirmed.

Both pairs of eyes, one pair green, the other pair blue, opened and swung to look at the blue-black cloak. The pain, the fear - it was gone. Almost as one person, the two Nobodies got to their feet. Reanel looked at them sharply, then in disbelief.

"Come back," Axel said softly. "Come back to us." Sparks flew from his body, a swirling path of blazing red sparks. They wrapped themselves around Larxene, around the light. And then Roxas knew. Axel's Life Force was holding in Larxene's.

_Fool!_ Reanel was angry. They all felt it as her voice lashed their minds. With all her will, she strengthened the light. A few of Axel's sparks began ripping away to join the flow of Larxene's. _You cannot stand against me alone!_

"He's not." Brown sparks joined themselves with the gold and the red. Roxas's Life Force mingled with theirs. The power was too strong; Reanel's Life Force was strong enough to capture Larxene's weakened one, but it couldn't keep its grip on three at the same time. And so the impossible began happening. Their mingled Life Force's began pulling Reanel's out of her.

_No! This is impossible.. _Reanel strengthened her light, desperately trying to hold in her Life Force. But one by one, black sparks began being dragged out of her, flying through the light, and connecting with Larxene. Then a flood of black began rushing through the light, rushing towards Larxene. Gold sparks began swirling around the Nobody as her stolen Life Force returned to her. _You…..no….you can't…_Reanel's body began to shake as the Life Force left her. She desperately tried to hold onto it, and couldn't. Black flowed out of her, across the whiteness, twisting and writhing as it was torn from it's owner. _No!_

"Yes!" Flames cut the greyness in half as Axel hurled the chakram. The fiery wheel went straight through Reanel's body and into the grey beyond. There wasn't need for another blow. The cloaked body hit the floor, and dark blood began welling out. Showers of sparks rose in the air over her body.

"That's it!" Larxene said softly, staring at the sparks. "That's her essence!" Her voice rose. "That's my chance….to gain a heart…my chance to be come a Somebody."

"Don't touch it!" Axel ordered. He grabbed at Larxene, pulling her away from it. She struggled against him.

"Axel, what are you doing?" She asked furiously, trying to wrestle free. "Let me go, stop it!"

"No." Axel's voice was firm. "We're going home. _Now_." He shut his eyes and brought up a memory of the three of them.

"No!" Larxene protested, struggling in his arms. "Let me go, let me go now! I have to-" She stopped talking and just strugged, trying to break free of him and reach the sparks. The pain began throbbing in Axel's chest as the memory began tying the three of them back to Castle Oblivion. Larxene somehow knew that whatever Axel was doing to stop her was taking final form; she suddenly grabbed his arm, ducked under it, and raced towards the sparks. She plunged her hand into them….and her fingers found nothing but empty air. Reanel's Life Force had died. "No!" Larxene wailed, tearing at the air in frustration. She whirled, looking at Axel. "_You!_" She shouted in anger, striking out at the pyro. The Life Force was completed; pain lanced through Axel, then all three of them were gone.

"…You should patch it up with Larxene." Roxas sat on the bed next to Axel. Not the infirmary bed; Axel had left that a week ago. Now he was back in his own room, almost back to normal. Almost.

"I know." Axel hugged his knees. "She's….I can't blame her. She had a chance to have a heart, to be a Somebody, and I stopped her."

"Why did you?" Roxas asked. Silence.

"Whatever." Axel got to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Roxas asked as his friend walked towards the door.

"To see Larxene." Axel shut the door behind him. He finally found Larxene standing on the castle tower, looking out over the World That Never Was. "Hi," he said awkwardly.

Larxene started to turn away. "Go away, Axel."

"I want to talk with you," Axel said, catching her sleeve. "I…I want to explain it to you."

Larxene turned back to him, and her eyes were full of tears. "_Why_? Why did you stop me? I could have been whole, Axel, I could have had a _heart_! So why…" The tears started coming. "Is it just because you can't have one? Is that it? You can't have a heart so you try to stop me…?"

"No!" Axel wrapped his arms around her. "It's not that, Larxene. It's just….would you have _wanted_ to be whole?" She punched him in the chest as hard as she could from her position, answering. "I don't mean like that. I mean….yes, you would have been complete. But Reanel would have completed you, know what I mean? The heart you would have gained would have been _her_ heart; along with the heart, you would have also received her lust, her anger, her pain. I'd rather have you a Nobody just the way you are than to be complete and like her."

Larxene sniffed, wiped away her tears. "Guess you're right…only…." She bit her lip.

"I know. I know." Axel hugged her gently, resting his red head on top of her golden hair. "I'm sorry, but…" He trailed off.

"But what?" Larxene wrapped her arms around his chest.

Axel tipped up her chin and brushed some of the hair out of her face. "I like how sadist you are already. I don't want you any more evil." Their lips brushed, then locked. Roxas, looking from the top of the stairs, grinned and started silently back down the way he had come. There were all one, in a way. The Life Force had tied them together in a way they hadn't know existed. It was time to create new memories.

_Axel, Larxene, and Roxas, sitting on a staircase….laughing._


End file.
